Friday, December 5, 2008

I never cease to be amazed how otherwise intelligent people freak out over speculations!!

For more than a year we have been bombarded by our peers in the media with word about the dire situation in the economy. In fact, most of the people I speak to that are flipping out have actually had NO change in their situations. They simply fear they will because of what someone said....

I've seen it other places too. When budgets get tight one of the first things to go is customer service and marketing. The sales department might try to go in to overdrive offering countless incentives but there are no more free samples that offer an example of the product. The pyromarketing that is so effective suddenly is viewed as too expensive.

These are the worst possible things for us, as writers, to do. When you see sales slumping, cash advances declining and cuts in publishing companies the first response seems to be panic. I've had clients ask me to offer LESS thorough service in an effort to cut cost. I had a family member who worked for a company a few years ago that suffered a downturn in sales. The first thing to go was advertising.

These cycles come and go and the best possible thing to do during these times is to reevaluate your current business plan, make adjustments, learn and then come out stronger.

That is what successful businesses do. They don't panic when they see trouble around them. They adapt. That is why major corporations like the big three auto makers and national banking institutions are having problems. They are too big and locked in to too many habits and contracts to be able to nimbly adjust.

You are not restricted to this. That makes this a prime time to adjust, modify and experience EXPLOSIVE GROWTH!! My pastor gave the definition of a crisis as and opportunity for a decision. Your level of success will be a direct result of your reaction to what is happening and your adjustments based on that reaction.

So go to my suggested readings page and get a few of these books from your local library or click through the links to buy it now. Then read them and see how you can make this current crisis your opportunity.

And visit the Writing Career Coach website for products and coaching that will help you with this.

But whatever you do, stop panicking. That is reactionary. By Planning, rather than panicking, you will be in control of the impact of this situation on your family. And you might find this situation as the 'fertilizer that becomes the field where your dreams grow.

Tiffany Colter is a writer, speaker and writing career coach who works with beginner to published writers. She can be reached through her website at www.WritingCareerCoach.comLearn more about Tiffany's Marketing techniques on her main blog.Read Tiffany's award winning manuscript "A Face in the Shadow" on her fiction blog.